ditorial
prerogative, and change the form of some of his expressions; but the
style of Mr. Heady is peculiar: it is his own, and the merit of
originality should not be denied to him, even in those rare instances in
which he breaks away from the trammels of recognized laws of language.

I am sure that the knowledge of the infirmities under which this author
writes will secure to him a lenient spirit of criticism, whilst it
inspires admiration in view of the great excellence of his work. Not a
line, not a word of complaint against the Providence that has afflicted
him--not the slightest allusion to his personal disabilities--will be
found anywhere in this volume. The spirit of the writer is cheerful, to
the verge of gayety itself. He has a keen sense of the ridiculous, and
exhibits a quiet humor which is couched in quaint and striking phrases.

How thankful ought we to be, to whom the gracious God has given the use
of all our senses! Should we not stand reproved in the presence of this
blind and deaf man, who uses for the benefit of others the means that he
possesses, whilst we, enjoying all of God's bounties, have made so
little use of them? This work is a sermon to the despondent, complaining
spirit, and a word of vigorous exhortation to the slothful man. May this
_moral_ of the book leave its record for good in the heart of every
reader!

W.P. HARRISON,

Book Editor, M.E. Church, South.

NASHVILLE, Dec., 1883.

INTRODUCTION.

Nearly twenty years had now elapsed since Daniel Boone had spent that
memorable twelve-month all alone in the depths of the boundless
wilderness; yet was Kentucky still the Hunter's Paradise, or the land of
the Dark and Bloody Ground, just as the wild adventurer or peaceful
laborer might happen to view it. In the more central regions, it is
true, a number of thriving settlements had already sprung up, and by
this time--1789, or thereabout--were quite too populous and strong to
apprehend any further serious molestation from their Indian neighbors.
But between these points and the Ohio River lay a wide border of
debatable land, where the restless savages still kept up their hostile
demonstrations, which, though less bloody and wasting than at an earlier
period, were yet sufficiently frequent and harassing to keep the white
settlers in perpetual disquietude and fear.

Sometimes different settlements would unite their forces into strong
parties of from fifty to two hundred riflemen,